Nintendo bets on new hand-held console to leap ahead of Sony

Nintendo Co., the world's biggest maker of portable game consoles, begins selling its newest hand- held player today, accompanied by a $40 million advertising push aimed at taking customers away from Sony Corp.

The ads for Kyoto-based Nintendo's biggest-ever product introduction emphasize the dual screens on its new Nintendo DS player. Other ads promote the DS's touch screen and voice recognition capabilities, which can be used to control game characters.